All
of life's many satisfactions can be found in the 69 communities of
Chicago Southland, a vast region encompassing Chicago's south and
southwest suburbs. More than 1,000,000 people make the area home. Many
of them work in Chicago Southland business and industry, many more in
retail and services.

The small cities, towns, and villages of Chicago Southland range widely
in size and economic strength. Populations vary from Oak Lawn's 56,000
to Bedford Park's 566. A few communities are purely residential, some
with homes whose values range into the seven figures. Several are
industrial centers, with Fortune 500 companies and other large firms
represented. Others are retail centers, drawing shoppers from a wide
radius. Some communities rub shoulders with busy neighbors, while
others have a rural setting where cattle graze at village boundaries.

Chicago Southland residents enjoy near endless opportunities for
recreation in thousands of acres of forest preserves, in parklands
owned by park districts and municipalities, and in a variety of
privately operated facilities.

Communities with convenient proximity to Chicago share its many
cultural amenities and sports and entertainment attractions. However,
Chicago Southland has developed its own cultural style with museums and
libraries, art galleries, two area symphony orchestras, a nationally
famous outdoor music theater, a big band ball room, and many annual
family-oriented festivals.

Chicago Southland's 69 communities are served by 65 public school
districts, numerous private and parochial schools, several excellent
two-year colleges, and a regional university.

Nine major hospitals provide quality health care for Chicago Southland
residents. These are augmented by women's health centers, clinics and
immediate care centers, and the offices of hundreds of doctors and
dentists located throughout the Chicago Southland area.

Together, the 69 communities of the Chicago Southland are 69 ways to
enjoy life, whether working and raising a family or retired and making
the most of each day.

A determination to grow is shared by the communities of Chicago
Southland and they work in harmony to achieve their goals. The result
is that several regional organizations exist to coordinate efforts.

The Chicago Southland Chamber of Commerce is a regional Chamber, both
serving and representing the business community. Its mission is to
create a favorable business environment and image in its 69
communities.

The South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association and the Southwest
Conference of local Governments discusses problems and opportunities of
mutual concern and maps appropriate plans and actions.

The Chicago Southland Development Inc., encourages and assists in
relocations and expansions of the area's business and industrial areas.

The Chicago Southland Convention and Visitors Bureau works to promote
the numerous appealing attractions of Chicago Southland. It responds to
queries with a colorful collection of informative brochures.

The Chicago Southland Housing Coalition strives to assure fair housing
opportunities for all residents of the area.

The several colleges and universities of Chicago Southland share in the
cooperative effort by providing career training and retraining programs
tailored for area business and industry.

This emphasis on regional cooperation assures that the 69 communities
of Chicago Southland will continue to grow and prosper as they enter
the 21st Century.

When land on the Illinois Prairie opened for settlement in the early
1800s, rugged pioneers from the east and eager immigrants from Europe
came in a flood. Thus began the creation of what is today the Chicago
Southland.

Orland Park was the first of many settlements established in those
early years. But, in 1834 it was called York Precinct. Back then, Oak
Lawn was called Black Oaks Grove and Glenwood was named Hickory Bend.
By the mid-1800s, there were settlements at Beecher, Frankfort,
Flossmoor, Homewood, Lemont, and South Holland.

At that point in history, the railroad arrived, starting a continuous
flow of people to the area of Chicago Southland. In 1890, Samuel
Tinley, Sr., one of the area's first station masters, was honored when
residents of Bremen changed the name to Tinley Park. In 1893, Lansing
was founded. A friend of Abraham Lincoln first settled in what is now
Olympia Fields, but construction of the Olympia Fields Country Club in
1915 gave rise to a community.

Many Chicago Southland communities were born and grew up in the 20th
century. University Park is typical. Originated in 1967 as a planned
unit development named Park Forest South, it became University Park
after Governors State University opened there.

Today, the communities of Chicago Southland continue to grow,
attracting business, industry, and homes by virtue of their setting,
their proximity to transportation, land availability, and the strength
of the potential work force.

There's aIways something to see, hear, and do in Chicago Southland and
residents of the 69 communities make the most of it.

They enjoy the year-round activities offered by thousands of acres of
forest preserves and nearly 40 local park districts. The forest
preserves provide nature trails for hiking and cross country skiing,
picnic groves, water sports, golf, and a variety of special events.

Local park districts maintain dozens of parks, swimming pools, tennis
courts, picnic areas and play grounds, and other facilities for outdoor
fun. These districts conduct year-round recreation programs,
competitive sports, and other activities for residents of all ages.
There also are special programs designed exclusively for senior
citizens.

Residents of Chicago Southland communities live in a veritable golfer's
paradise. There are some 33 topnotch golf courses in the area. Among
them is Lemont's Cog Hill, ranked as one of the nation's top fifty
courses. It has four 18-hole courses, including the famed Dubsdread,
home of the Western Open.

Families find fun in the area's miniature golf courses and several
privately-owned family entertainment centers. They go on camping trips
to the forest preserves and private camp grounds in the area, or cross
into Indiana for a stay at nearby Indiana Dunes State Park.

Horse racing fans flock to Crete's ' Balmoral Park and Hawthorne Park
in the Stickney-Cicero area. Of course, Chicago's professional
football, basketball, baseball, and hockey are conveniently near For
those who take pleasure in games of chance, the 1,000 passenger
riverboat casinos at Joliet are unexcelled this side of Las Vegas.

Dining out is a genuine joy in Chicago Southland. Almost every one of
the 69 communities has its favorite restaurant or pub where distinctive
cuisine is offered. Throughout the entire area, there is the widest
possible choice of menus from the usual fast food to the ethnic and
gourmet entrees of fashionable restaurants.

Visitors to the area find plenty of comfortable places to stay. They
range from quaint bed and breakfast establishments enveloped in history
to crisply modern motels and hotels with all of the amenities for a
memorable stay.

From Tinley Park's World Music Theater, which presents
internationally-known artists, to members of the Chicago Heights Drama
Group, with 60 years of performances behind them, Chicago Southland
offers the full scope of arts and entertainment. The area is home to
the professional Illinois Philharmonic, the Southwest Symphony, and the
often praised Governors State University String Quartet.

Governors State University's Regional Center for Technology and the
Performing Arts is targeted to open during academic year 1995-96. A
state-of the-art videoconferencing and performing arts facility, the
center will feature seats and a balcony, an orchestra pit on a lift, a
fully-rigged and lighted fly loft together with the latest in
television technologies. The 1,200-seat center will attract
nationally-famed artists and area ensembles, orchestras, and theatrical
groups to an elegant home. In addition, it will be available to the
corporate and professional community of Chicago Southland. Also on the
campus of Governors State is the Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park. Highly
praised, its collection of 22 outdoor sculptures is regarded as among
the finest in the world.

Tinley
Park's World Music Theatre is the world's largest outdoor music
theater, accommodating an audience of 27,000. The theater books only
the top stars of popular music.

Many of Chicago Southland's park districts sponsor summertime concerts
in the park by community bands, locally and regionally known artists,
and occasionally a national recording artist. Summertime also brings
out the festivals and every one of Chicago

Southland's 69 communities celebrates on at least one occasion. Most
often foods, rides for kids, and free entertainment are part of
festival activities.

Park Forest is the home of the Conservatory of Music and Dance, and
Richton Park takes pride in its American Dance Center Ballet Company.
Professional theatrical performances are presented by the Illinois
Theatre Center, in Park Forest. It is the only Equity Theatre in the
Chicago Southland region. Additionally, for more than 60 years the
Chicago Heights Drama Group has been presenting community theater with
practiced expertise.

Summit's Candlelight Dinner Playhouse is the nation's first and oldest
dinner theatre. Summit is also the home of the Forum Theatre, the
area's singular comedy theatre. Several area park districts also
sponsor drama groups whose performances delight local audiences.

There are places that Chicago Southland residents always take visitors.
Among these is the Midwest Carvers Museum in South Holland, where more
than 1,000 wood carvings are displayed, and the Lotton Art Glass
gallery in Lansing, featuring displays of mouth blown art glass.

Chicago Southland libraries pro vide special services for adults and
children and many maintain extensive reference collections of value to
local industry. Through the Suburban Library System, patrons have
access to the holdings of more than 230 libraries in the Chicago
metropolitan area.

Nine
major hospitals and a broad network of immediate care facilities serve
the health care needs of the 1.2 million people living in Chicago
Southland. The entire region is covered by a 911 emergency system.

With more than 1,100 beds, Oak Forest Hospital, in Oak Forest, is
Chicago Southland's largest medical facility. It provides special
diagnostic, treatment, and rehabilitation services to patients with
physical impairments, chronic illnesses, and degenerative diseases.

A state-designated Level I trauma center, Christ Hospital and Medical
Center, in Oak Lawn, is the second largest treatment center in Chicago
Southland. It has 827 beds and employs more than 4,300 workers. A Level
I pediatric trauma center, as well, the hospital provides obstetric
services, adult and pediatric cardiac care, surgical services, and
general medical services. It is renowned for its oncology program.

Christ Hospital and Medical center also operates a women's health
center in Tinley Park, and a center for physical therapy and
occupational health maintenance in Burbank.

Ingalls Hospital, in Harvey, offers a full range of medical and
surgical services. The 704-bed facility has family care centers in
Matteson and Tinley Park. Palos Community Hospital, in Palos Heights,
has 507 beds and is an acute care facility with a 24-hour emergency
service

Little Company of Mary Hospital, an acute care facility with 500 beds,
serves the Evergreen Park area. The hospital is the site of the first
human organ transplant and continues to be known for its pioneering
services.

With 472 beds, St. Jarnes Hospital Medical Center, in Chicago Heights,
is a state-designated Level II trauma center offering the full spectrum
of medical services.

St.
Francis Hospital and Health Center, in Blue Island, is also a
state-designated Level II trauma center with 410 beds. The hospital
operates immediate care centers in Tinley Park and Crestwood and a
family health center in Frankfort.

South Suburban Hospital is a 270-bed, not-for profit, acute-care
facility in Hazel Crest. The hospital provides a wide range of
comprehensive inpatient, out patient, diagnostic, and ambulatory
medical services, including a 24-hour emergency department, a nursing
center, home health services, sick-child day care, and a number of
support groups. South Suburban has a strong tradition of innovation in
the use of state-of the-art technology. The hospital's family birth
center was the first of its kind in the south suburban area.

Several hundred doctors, dentists, chiropractors, and other medical
specialists have offices in Chicago Southland to serve residents. In
addition, the area is dotted by medical clinics. Excellent nursing
homes are also available throughout the Chicago Southland area, as are
attractive retirement centers offering everything from independent
living to skill nursing care.